The rich tapestry of energy in the North - Atkins Global

A recent visit to Hartlepool made me stop and reflect on the richness and diversity of the energy industry in the North of England. Up close to the Brent Delta oil rig being decommissioned on land within site of the comparatively tiny Hartlepool nuclear power station, made clear to me that there’s a huge and significant role for companies like Atkins to play in helping to develop and deliver a sustainable energy mix in the North. What was also surprising was the backdrop of the many offshore wind farms that dot the horizon all around the counties of the Northern Powerhouse. 

 

But it’s not just about the projects that are happening right now, it’s also about the future. Atkins is actively engaged in driving the whole energy market in the UK and Europe forward; our voice is an important, experienced one and through our connections with national and local government, and our ability to see the energy system as an interconnected system with transport and cities, we are making a real difference to how energy is made and used. 

 

One of the ways we’re doing this in the North is through representation on the Northern Energy Taskforce. The Taskforce was established to oversee an ambitious programme of work to develop an energy strategy for the Northern Powerhouse. The Taskforce has three central objectives:

 

• Develop a plan for the northern energy system to 2030, addressing the key needs and challenges facing energy consumers and businesses in the North.
 

• Create an economic vision for the northern energy sector to 2030 and a practical roadmap for how to get there, addressing the opportunities for businesses, higher education institutions and the public sector in the energy sector.
 

• Set out a plan for energy that will consider whether and how various powers and responsibilities for energy issues should be considered at a pan-northern, sub-regional and local level, and whether this is realistic or even desirable.

 

Our business and commercial approach has been an important one in informing these discussions and it has helped raise our profile in the industry by providing a voice of reason and pragmatism. The Taskforce includes major companies from across the North of England including Northern Powergrid, Northern Gas Networks, Siemens, Tees Valley Unlimited, the Green Investment Bank and Peel Energy to name but a few. 

To help inform the strategy, a series of roundtable meetings were held with key stakeholders in the private and public sectors. During this process, the Taskforce has published two major reports. The first report called 'Who will power the powerhouse' (Baxter and Cox 2017), looked at the current landscape of the northern energy sector, assessing the key challenges it faces and opportunities it could grasp. A second report, also by Baxter and Cox, called 'Leading, adopting or drifting? Where next for the Northern energy sector?', demonstrated how the North could become an energy sector leader and act as a pathfinder for unlocking the energy trilemma for the UK.

The final strategy paper, which was published in October 2017, launched by the IPPR North and the Northern Energy Taskforce, outlines the potential of the North of England to be a leader in low carbon energy for the UK; a global hub for research and innovation from academia to entrepreneurial start-ups; a pioneer of new and innovative energy solutions from smart grid technology, through to large scale low carbon heating and transport systems – such as the Leeds city hydrogen pilot – and integration and demand management; and a skills hub for jobs ranging from research and development to engineering and skills for the digital economy. Read the report in full at the IPPR North website. 

 

The Northern Energy Strategy is closely aligned with the pillars of the government’s Industrial Strategy plans, which recognises the importance of innovation and economic growth through new technology, as well as the need to invest in infrastructure, affordable energy and clean growth, and the need to build on local strengths to deliver benefits to all regions of the UK, amongst other priorities.

 

The work that is currently happening, and could happen in the North in the future, is both inspiring and incredibly innovative. With ten offices across the North of England employing over 1,800 people and working on projects as diverse as nuclear decommissioning at Sellafield, Midland Mainline Electrification and the M62 Smart Motorway, Atkins is at the heart of the Northern Powerhouse. As such, we’re very proud to have been part of this work to develop a set of ambitious, forward-thinking ideas for the Northern Powerhouse.